Ruthless Charles Barkley Defends Michael Jordan’s GOAT Case Against LeBron James

LeBron James has always been one of the most consistent players in the NBA. As a player ages, their performance level reaches a peak and then starts to decline before they finally retire. However, LeBron’s case is an odd one as compared to the normal scenario. Even at age 37, the ‘King’ continues to take the league by storm, with his dominance keeping the Lakers afloat this season.

Due to his domination and consistency, there have always been talks of him being the Greatest of All-Time. However, to attain that position, one has to dethrone the great Michael Jordan. This has led to a debate between fans and critics from each side stating their case. One such case was made by NBA legend Charles Barkley, who spoke in favor of Jordan still being the GOAT.

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Charles Barkley defends MJ against LeBron James

While speaking to host Renée Paquette during an episode of ‘The Sessions’ podcast, Barkley shed light on why he believes Jordan is still the GOAT. Barkley started off by saying that the GOAT debate between MJ and the ‘King’ is a lazy one because Jordan had retired several years ago. Furthermore, he added that MJ was the greatest player he ever played against, while also speaking about the respect he has for LeBron due to his impact inside and outside of basketball. He then proceeded to state why MJ was greater than LeBron.

“I just think it’s a lazy debate. Last year when that ‘Last Dance’ thing came out, I was telling myself, holy sh**! They almost killed Michael back then,” said Barkley.

“And then to see the way the game is played today, well, a kiss on the cheek is foul. It’s like night and day what I’m dealing with,” he added.

Barkley explained that LeBron is playing in much easier conditions as compared to MJ, who had to play against teams like the ‘Bad Boy’ Pistons. The lack of physicality and roughness made things easier for LeBron, which is why Barkley believes MJ is still greater than the ‘King’.

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Regardless of what Barkley has to say, the debate will continue. Compared to MJ, who was a pure scorer, LeBron also gets his teammates involved during games. But Jordan was a player who took the NBA to a whole new level. His style of play inspired many to ‘be like Mike!’ However, with LeBron still having time on his hands, it is still highly likely for the debate to swing in his favor.